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nTranslator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

n“Leave quickly!”

nThe Mermaid Princess was cautious and always kept to herself while being in the Follower Space. Other than the times when she traded when Lin Jie obtained precious water resources, she rarely spoke. Her sudden cry surprised Lin Jie so much that he whipped out the Random Teleportation Scroll without thinking.

nDing~

n—”You are currently in a restricted space, and unable to use space-shift items.”

nUpon looking up, Lin Jie realized that a faint blue veil had descended onto the desert, just like a turnover dish bowl that encased the entire island within. It seemed like the outside world could no longer peer into the island. Fog began brewing throughout the surroundings, and the oceanic castles and corals showcased their magnificent beauty.

nThe manipulations and controls of the underwater world must be the work of an expert.

n“Princess Herya, we have been ordered by the Poseidon Shrine to bring you back.” A Merpeople Warrior rose from the sea as his tail transformed into a pair of human legs. He stood on the sea surface with ease, as if it was flat land.

nThe Merpeople Warrior’s armor was made of rare Ocean Blue Gold. It was an extremely rare type of ore that existed on the seabed. A tiny piece of it was capable of conjuring vapor bubbles on land and cast favorable weathers onto an otherwise dried up land.

nMerfolk Guard Leader! He was one of the most powerful figures in the Poseidon Shrine, that dominated the masses.

nHerya snuck out from the Follower Space and agglomerated a physical entity using the Heart of Merfolk. She glanced at the leader calmly and laughed. “Why do you want me back? To lock me up?”

n“Princess, why are you so weak? Could it be—” The leader was surprised to see Herya in such a bad state. She appeared to be at the brink of death as her entity could barely be sustained and was going to vanish anytime soon.

nHe targeted Lin Jie, and rage filled his vision. He shouted, “Evil human! You are seeking death!”

n‘What does it have to do with me?’ Lin Jie scolded in his mind but maintained his composure.

nIt was to his understanding that he had triggered the Poseidon Shrine’s notice when he had entered this sea region. They were there to capture the Herya. However, that was absolutely out of the question as she was a legitimate Poseidon Shrine Princess, and currently, she was extremely weak. Herya would definitely fit the bill of ‘Wealthy but lack of time’.

nLin Jie grew serious and snorted in response. “I am seeking death? If it weren’t for me, your princess would have been destroyed by your great genius, Sea Mage Laney!”

n“What?” The leader was stunned.

n“What he said is true…” Herya let out a sigh and explained the sequence of events. She concluded, “I have to rely on this alternate realm human’s powers to survive. He will do his best to search for aqua sources to heal me. I will return when I am well again. Please help to pass on this message to Father to ease his worries.”

nThe Merfolk Leader was terror-stricken, and after hesitating for a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, “Yes!”

n“Retreat!”

nAfter the loud boom, thousands of Merfolk clad in heavy armor rose to the surface! Their departure was like giant waves, magnificent and grand.

n“There are so many of them…” Lin Jie gasped as he had thought the Merfolk Leader had come alone.

n“Alas, I think Father is worried. Warrior, I have to return to the Poseidon Shrine. Please help me to search for more ancient aqua water sources. I will reward you, no, I will give you riches when I am back.” The Mermaid Princess sighed deeply with heavy thoughts as she entered the Follower Space. Soon after, a mission notice sounded.

n—”You have accepted the mission Search for Aqua Sources.”

nLin Jie’s brows furrowed as he realized that the mission involving the Poseidon Shrine was about to be put forward. Poseidon Shrine was in charge of the Sea Regions, so if the mission was completed, Brotherhood’s influence and power would increase exponentially. They would be able to have access to ocean minerals, herbs, sea creatures, training grounds, and so on. Those things held so much value that it was beyond imagination!

nWhen the army retreated, Lin Jie was finally able to utilize the returning scroll.

nIn the next few days, other than traveling to Hell Gate to conquer the three dungeons, Lightning Swamp, Fire Summit, and Gale Region, he spent all his energy and time at the library.

nCity of Light, Library.

nLin Jie sat in a cross-legged position as he huddled a book that was emitting a rotten stench. The books that recorded the other ages had not been touched for a long time. Thus, they were at the brink of rotting. He was able to enter this reserve room freely as he was on good terms with the library administrator.

nIf someone came in now, they would be stunned.

nFive people were sitting in the room! The eerie part was that all five of them looked identical in all aspects, and the only differentiation was that one was engulfed in flames, one was icy to the touch, one was illusory like the wind, while the last one had lightning traveling across his body. These were the four clones that were formed with the help of Hardworking Pants and the other members when they had been venturing through the four dungeons.

nThe three other clones’ attributes were no different from the Ice Clone. Other than inheriting Lin Jie’s own techniques, they possessed the two other skills, Sacrifice and Tranquility.

nWhen the four clones skimmed through the books, the knowledge they had gathered would be transmitted into Lin Jie’s brain as well, and that was the advantage of having clones! His reading speed was five times faster than usual. With the boost in Knowledge and Wisdom, his reading speed and efficiency increased. A Retrieve function, that was similar to a search engine, would be formulated after breezing through a book.

nFurthermore, he received the title Scholar, with 200 points added to his mana bar and 20 points each added to his Wisdom and Spirit.

n“Phew… there were at least 50 eras recorded in the history books. The resources were plentiful and abundant during ancient times. There must have been many experts then. However, strong players would drain the resources rapidly, which widens the strength gaps between recess, but this, in turn, accelerated technological advancements. It’s hard to conclude.” Lin Jie closed his books and said coherently, “No wonder the more ancient an item, the better it is because Primordial Ruins get stronger with time. Resources are finite, and that fact led us to our current situation.”

nHe gained several understandings after immersing in the books. Many comprehensions from real-life examples could be used in-game as the game was built with reality in mind.

n“Oh well, a commoner like me is not suited for this sort of high-level thinking.” Lin Jie massaged his temples. His main motive for reading was to gain a better understanding regarding the Heritage Equipment and the Sealed Dusty Book. Unfortunately, he wasn’t very successful as the books only briefly mentioned them, and much effort was required to extract all the information.

nNonetheless, he managed to obtain some details.

nThe Demon of Destruction was a creature from another land or another plane, and it was the Abyss Hell. The Abyss was very hierarchical, and it was a place where the strongest survived. Weaker Devils would be confined by the stronger ones for prayers to boost the latter’s powers. The Demon Kings’ strongest skill was prayer power; in other words, the ability to create duplicates.

nAfter conquering the four maps, Ice Castle, Fire Summit, Lightning Swamp, and Gale Region, the Demon of Destruction’s strongest clones had been destroyed. What’s left was the host and its illusory duplicate.

nHowever, due to the Demon of Destruction’s powers, its duplicate was able to solidify, and it was difficult to differentiate it from the host. In his previous life, when Lin Jie had led his team to the dungeon, they had attempted to fight the Boss with all their Holy Light skill scrolls, equipment, and potions, but it seemed like that had been the wrong approach. In order to defeat the Boss, their best bet would be—fire!

nIn ancient Chinese mythology, there were stories about ghosts and devils fearing fire. This was a suitable theory in The New Age.

nFurthermore, the book also mentioned that a clear spring had once appeared beneath the King’s throne, and it had even cleansed the night sky and brightened up the world. That was the Primordial Water Source—Reveille Dew, which was related to the Twilight Dew.

n“Tomorrow will be our last day of conquering,” Lin Jie said calmly, as he remained unaffected by the various incidents, just like an old pedant. The saying that reading could alter a person’s disposition to be calm and collected was indeed true.

n“Lin Jie, did you spend the last few days in the library?” A girl clad in a white cloak and cape stood at the door. It was Bu Yi, who came to visit, and she held a stack of books in her arms. She half-kneeled in front of Lin Jie and smiled. “Decent and Pants are constantly complaining about you.”

nLin Jie closed the book and smiled. “What are they complaining about?”

n“They are saying that you are trying to be a good student in the game by hanging out in the library when you don’t even read in the real world.” Bu Yi laughed while covering her mouth.

n“Haha, they aren’t wrong.” Lin Jie yawned, “Can I help you with something?”

nBu Yi handed the books over and grew serious. “Someone called Yesterday Morning passed this book to us, and said that we have to hand it to you. He is our enemy, but this book seems a little odd, so I think you better take a look at it.”

nLin Jie’s eyebrows rose as he held the book.

nFour words appeared: “Hello there, Lone Wolf.”

n“What is this?” Lin Jie was about to close the book before several more words appeared. “I am the Digital Guild’s Sub-Team Leader. My game ID is Desert Fly. You might have heard of me before.”

nLin Jie was stunned. ‘Desert Fly!’ This slightly humorous name was a legend that had once stood at the top of the ESports arena!

nLin Jie attempted to reply, “What’s up?”

n“Haha, nothing big, I just want to remind you to grab the first clear for the Hell Gate.”

n“I will.”

n“I know you will. Actually, I am here for something else. You have interacted with our men, but I have to cut all ties with them. I am here for a friendly deal… To be honest, I got a hold of many The New Age’s secrets, and we can do a trade.”

n“What sort of trade?”

n“Of course, one with great gains! Our worlds are about to combine, and we will be fighting for the same goals. Although it sounds a little cringy, I hope that you will do it for China and its ESports arena. No, in your words, we can work together.”

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